Alice

Chad Ubovich is already a proven guitar hero, having played in Fuzz and with Mikal Cronin. His second Meatbodies album is a mellower, full-band effort with more psychedelic textures than before.

As California garage rock was recently enjoyinga hotstreakof sorts, Meatbodies emerged with a 2014 debut that asserted them as wreckers to be reckoned with. Songs like “Disorder,” with its fast, beefy, infectious hook, could hang with Ty Segall’s most rabid material. (It helps, of course, that Segall himself played bass and drums on that track.) It was an album with layers—one where earworm hooks and massive guitar solos wove together with gradual, acoustic psychedelia. Frontman and Meatbodies mastermind Chad Ubovich was already a proven guitar hero from his tenure in Fuzz and Mikal Cronin’s live band. With Meatbodies, he showed that he was an artist who could craft a strong rock album all on his own.

On Alice, Meatbodies test the limits of their capabilities by wading into murkier waters: they made a concept album. The overarching story isn’t exactly spelled out, but the album is filled with strange characters and over-the-top symbolism. Alice, from the title track, leaves men bloody and foaming on the ground. “Disciples” is sung from the perspective of a king who declares himself “the idol,” relishes the fealty of his apostles, and demands his subjects keep their feelings to themselves. Sisyphus, Bethlehem, martyrs, rolling stones, bombs, burning oceans, and translucent flesh are all ingredients in Alice’s narrative slurry. Near Biblical images of torture come before concerns about whether or not to check your texts first thing in the morning. There’s likely some allegory in there, but in the chaos, it’s difficult to parse what exactly they’re going for.

It’s fine, though, since the lyrical fire and brimstone is a natural fit for Meatbodies’ well-honed thrash. That said, the band behind Alice is a different beast than the one on Meatbodies. The debut album’s massive sound fell largely on the shoulders of Ubovich, who played most of the instruments himself (with an assist from Segall). Alice is a proper full-band effort. While Ubovich still plays multiple instruments, and his guitar solos take a good share of the spotlight (especially the monster that opens “Disciples”), drummer Erik Jimenez keeps things frantic. Bassist Kevin Boog is responsible for the band’s monolithic low end this time. The biggest wrinkle in the band’s makeup comes with the addition of Patrick Nolan (of Walter), who trades lead vocal duties with Ubovich throughout. More voices means more variety, and the full band pack even more psychedelic textural experimentation than before.

While there are a few livewire moments that recall Meatbodies’ most exciting work—the triumphant riff from “Touchless,” for example—Alice doesn’t exactly come out swinging. It’s a more sedate record; mellow grooves and acoustic strumming make up its core infrastructure. On “Kings,” big, fuzzy guitar solos are largely just dressing—they sit alongside the synths, adding atmosphere instead of maintaining focus. “Gyre” is caked in fuzz and leads with a high drama guitar solo, but the song’s seven-minute runtime drags as the melody and instruments thin out. Several songs go on for a little too long, and the added guitar fireworks rarely overcome the repetitive, less interesting melodies. There’s not a standout hook that’s as immediate or exciting as 2014 tracks like “Him,” “Mountain,” or “Disorder.” That’s ultimately the trouble with Meatbodies’ concept record ambitions. A muddled narrative isn’t a big deal, but with Alice, Meatbodies have snuffed out a little too much of their old fire.